Friday, November 13, 2009

Rainbow carrots are lovely, aren't they? Lovely in the way that you really don't need to do much to make them look and taste really spectacular and special...because they already are. Lovely in the way that somehow, just by flashing a fancy color, an ordinary root vegetable is transformed in to something extraordinary. Lovely in the way that in about the five minutes it takes to julienne them, you can have a crisp and tasty slaw that goes well with just about anything....but I'm really getting ahead of myself here.

First you need to pull off those green stems and give them a good scrub. You don't peel these because the brilliant color of the purple carrots is only on the outer layer. So just make sure they are good and clean and any little root fibers are scrubbed off.

Then comes the small matter of julienning them. I have a mandoline, which is perfect for a job like this...if you like doing dishes. But come the end of the day, I have usually been doing dishes for hours and hours so that is not something I really look forward to. Nor do I have the impeccable knife skills required to cut such long slivers of carrots. So luckily, I found this peeler thingie that actually slices the carrots into julienne strips and fits into my dishwasher's silverware compartment. Cool, huh? Alternately, you can cut the carrots into thicker ribbons using your regular vegetable peeler, which isn't as slaw-ish, but also does the job.

Finally, these gorgeous ribbons of carrot are tossed with lime juice, soy sauce and toasted sesame oil for a delicious, and nutritious (and beautiful) salad. If you can't find them in your farmers' market, don't despair! Plain orange carrots will work just fine....

Place the carrots in a medium bowl. In another smaller bowl, whisk together the lime juice, sesame oil, soy sauce and honey. Drizzle over the carrots and toss well (I used my hands). Sprinkle with the toasted sesame seeds and chopped cilantro. Serve immediately.

10 comments:

Wow....absolutely and simply...grin...beautiful! Wonderful salad, great photography and of course...your subject was most cooperative in presenting itself in the colors of the rainbow. I must tell you, I have never seen carrots like these. Stunning!

I saw beautiful colorful carrots ( just like yours) for the first time in Union Square in NYC two weeks ago. I have read abut them a million times, never saw one where I lived. You are absolutely right these carrots are just stunning.

Alison is a recipe developer and stay-at-home mom, obsessed with her next meal and passionate about buying her food from local growers, which in Southern California shouldn't be difficult, but is harder than it sounds. Luckily, she spends summers in gorgeous Cape Cod, where farm-fresh food is as accessible as it is delicious.

If you would like to post or publish any of this blog's contents including photographs, text or recipes, please ask first. I do like to share, especially when I'm given due credit! Email me with any questions at alisonlaney@aol.com.